Le Mans 24 hour race 1965

The number 31 Rover BRM. Jackie Stewart and Graham Hill drove this 2-liter gas turbine racing car in tenth place overall.

Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ

A Ferrari Dino 166SP, here in the 1000 km race at the Nürburgring in 1965 with Lorenzo Bandini at the wheel. At Le Mans, Giancarlo Baghetti and Mario Casoni drove a Dino 166SP; Failure after two laps due to engine failure.

The 33rd 24-hour race of Le Mans , the 33 ^e Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans , also 24 Heures du Mans, Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans , took place from June 19 to 20, 1965 the Circuit des 24 Heures .

The race

Ford and Ferrari

After the significant defeat in 1964 , those responsible at Ford reorganized the activities of the racing team. The most important decision was the commitment of Carroll Shelby . The former racing driver Shelby, who had won the endurance race on the Sarthe in 1959 as a driver, was now a racing team owner. In his Shelby American Incorporation , AC Cobra were mainly used. Shelby had the previous 4.2-liter engines replaced by the 4.7-liter V8 engines from the Cobras. In addition there were two new GT40 Mk.II, each equipped with 7-liter units. Ford Motorsport Director John Wyer managed to place two more GT40s in the private teams of Georges Filipinetti and Rob Walker . So there were a total of six GT40 at the start, because the sixth car was registered by Ford France. This vehicle driven by Maurice Trintignant and Guy Ligier was a one-off and the only GT40 roadster ever to be used at Le Mans.

The factory team Ferrari brought two new P2 to Le Mans. In addition to a Spyder body, these new prototypes also had new DOHC V12 engines. There was also a 3.3-liter 275P2 and a 6-cylinder Dino with a 1.6-liter engine. The customer version of the Ferrari P-types, the 365 with the same chassis but less power, was delivered to the British racing team Maranello Concessionaires by Ronnie Hoare and the North American Racing Team by Luigi Chinetti .

The 250LM , developed in 1964, had the 3.3 liter engines from the Ferrari 275 GTB . In the literature, these vehicles cause irritation, especially in connection with the Le Mans race. According to Ferrari's typology, the car should actually have been referred to as the 275LM, analogous to the 275 GTB. This is why this term is used in some statistics. However, the 250LM was based on the Ferrari 250P and was officially designated as such by Ferrari. Since Ferrari could not produce the 100 pieces required for homologation in the GT class, all of the privately registered cars had to compete in the prototype class.

The course of the race

After the obligatory Le Mans start , Chris Amon came in the Shelby MK. II as the leader from the first lap back to the start and finish. Behind another Ford, Joseph Siffert was in third place. Siffert drove the Maserati Tipo 65 , which Maserati had developed for the French company representative Johnny Simone . But Siffert only got three laps, then he had an accident and had to give up. This racing car is the last Maserati to be used in the 24-hour race to this day.

After two hours of racing, three Fords had already retired when Chris Amon pitted with clutch problems. Took the lead Ken Miles , of a Ford cockpit with him Bruce McLaren said. For Ford, however, the race turned into a debacle. All of the cars were out of the car just after midnight. Ferrari fared not much better, all works cars were lost by Sunday morning. When last year's winner Jean Guichet retired with a gearbox damage after driving 315 laps, a duel between two private Ferrari 250LM for victory developed.

One vehicle was used by the North American Racing Team and was driven by Masten Gregory and Jochen Rindt . At the beginning, the vehicle was given little chance of reaching the target. In his young racing driver years, Jochen Rindt was considered to be particularly material-killing, and his driving style seemed almost impossible to get through. The second 250LM was reported by Frenchman Pierre Dumay , who shared the cockpit with Belgian Taf Gosselin . On Sunday, almost two hours before the end of the race, this 250LM was safely in the lead when Gosselin had a puncture at the end of the Les Hunaudières straight. The tire exploded and destroyed the body on the rear of the car. Gosselin brought the car back to the pits, but the tedious repairs lost seven laps. To everyone's astonishment, the Rindt-Gregory-Ferrari was now at the top. But this car also had technical problems. The starter in particular made difficulties, which turned every pit stop into a gamble. In the end, however, Rindt and Gregory won with a secure five-lap lead over the Belgian Ferrari. To date, it is the last overall victory for the Italian sports car brand at Le Mans.

Ed Hugus, the third man

The American Ed Hugus was a reserve driver for the North American Racing Team. According to the regulations at the time, each racing team was allowed to nominate a substitute driver for all vehicles used. This could then be used if it was clear before the race that one of the drivers was not allowed or could not start for health reasons. However, like so many in motorsport, these regulations were not formulated precisely enough. So it remained unclear whether the substitute driver could also be used during the ongoing race. The only thing that was clearly regulated was that a driver who had left in an accident could not be replaced.

Just before 4 a.m., Masten Gregory pitted out of the blue. Gregory, who was very nearsighted and also wore his glasses in the cockpit, had got smoke in the car and in his eyes. Like every year, hundreds of barbecues were going on around the track all night long. The resulting smoke moved like fog over the route and often hindered the drivers. Unfortunately, Jochen Rindt was not in the pits - his next assignment was not due for two hours later - and nobody knew where he was. But Ed Hugus was present, who quickly put on Gregory's helmet and drove his stint to an end. This remained hidden from a broad sports public for decades. Hugus himself first clarified the situation in a letter in 2005. Hugus was neither present at the award ceremony, nor was he in the official result list. However, pictures from 1965 show Hugus standing in front of the winners' stand. There is also a rumor that the American, hindered by the crowds, did not make it to the ceremony in time, despite the help of two gendarmes. Years after the race, Luigi Chinetti told Hugus that although he had reported the incident to the ACO officials, they were not very interested in the situation. The French journalist Christian Moity, editor of various books on the 24-hour race, contradicts this view in a publication. Chinetti would have had every reason to keep quiet about the driver change, as the risk of disqualification would have been relatively high. Hugus has to do without the honor of winning the 24-hour race to this day. Although his name has found its way into the winners' lists of recent publications about Le Mans in recent years, the official result from 1965 has not been changed until today.

Results

Pilots by nationality

25 French	21 British	12 Americans	11 Italians	9 Germans
8 Belgians	5 Swiss	2 fins	2 Dutch	2 New Zealanders
1 Australian	1 Luxembourger	1 Mexican	1 Austrian	1 Swede

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires	Round
1	P 5.0	21st	North American Racing Team	Masts Gregory Jochen Rindt	Ferrari 250LM	Ferrari 3.3L V12	G	348
2	P 5.0	26th	Pierre Dumay	Pierre Dumay Gustave Gosselin	Ferrari 250LM	Ferrari 3.3L V12	D.	343
3	GT 4.0	24	Ecurie Francorchamps	Willy Mairesse Jean Blaton	Ferrari 275 GTB	Ferrari 3.3L V12	D.	340
4th	P 2.0	32	Porsche System Engineering	Herbert Linge Peter Nöcker	Porsche 904/6	Porsche 2.0L Flat-6	D.	336
5	GT 2.0	36	Porsche System Engineering	Gerhard Koch Anton Fischhaber	Porsche 904/4 GTS	Porsche 2.0L Flat-4	D.	325
6th	P 5.0	27	Scuderia Filipinetti	Dieter Spoerry Armand Boller	Ferrari 250LM	Ferrari 3.3L V12	G	324
7th	P 5.0	18th	North American Racing Team	Pedro Rodríguez Nino Vaccarella	Ferrari 365P1 / P2 Spyder	Ferrari 4.4L V12	D.	320
8th	GT 5.0	11	AC Cars Ltd.	Jack Sears Dick Thompson	Shelby Cobra Daytona	Ford 4.7L V8	G	304
9	P + 5.0	3	Iso Prototipi Bizzarrini	Régis Fraissinet Jean de Mortemart	Iso Grifo A3C	Chevrolet 5.4L V8	D.	303
10	P 2.0	31	Owen Racing Organization	Graham Hill Jackie Stewart	Rover - BRM	Rover 2.0L gas turbine	D.	284
11	GT 2.0	39	British Motor Corporation	Paddy Hopkirk Andrew Hedges	MG MGB hardtop	MG 1.8L I4	D.	283
12	P 1.3	49	Donald Healey Motor Company	Paul Hawkins John Rhodes	Austin-Healey Sprite Sebring	BMC 1.3L I4	D.	278
13	GT 1.3	60	Standard Triumph Ltd.	Jean-Jacques Thuner Simo Lampinen	Triumph Spitfire	Triumph 1.1L I4	D.	274
14th	GT 1.3	54	Standard Triumph Ltd.	Claude Dubois Jean-François Piot	Triumph Spitfire	Triumph 1.1L I4	D.	263
Failed
15th	P 5.0	20th	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	Mike Parkes Jean Guichet	Ferrari 330P2 Spyder	Ferrari 4.0L V12	D.	315
16	P 1.3	48	Donald Healey Motor Company	Rauno Aaltonen Clive Baker	Austin-Healey Sprite Sebring	BMC 1.3L I4	D.	256
17th	P 5.0	19th	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	John Surtees Ludovico Scarfiotti	Ferrari 330P2 Spyder	Ferrari 4.0L V12	D.	225
18th	GT 2.0	37	Auguste Veuillet	Robert Buchet Ben Pon	Porsche 904/4 GTS	Porsche 2.0L Flat-4	D.	224
19th	P 5.0	22nd	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	Lorenzo Bandini Giampiero Biscaldi	Ferrari 275P2	Ferrari 3.3L V12	D.	221
20th	GT 2.0	44	Equipe Grand Ducale Luxembourgeoise	Nicolas Koob Alain Finkelstein	Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ	Alfa Romeo 1.6L I4	D.	218
21st	GT 2.0	41	Autodelta SpA	Roberto Bussinello Jean Rolland	Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ / 2	Alfa Romeo 1.6L I4	D.	217
22nd	GT 5.0	9	Shelby-American Inc.	Jerry Grant Dan Gurney	Shelby Cobra Daytona	Ford 4.7L V8	G	204
23	P 2.0	35	Porsche System Engineering	Günter Klass Dieter Glemser	Porsche 904/6	Porsche 2.0L Flat-6	D.	202
24	P 1.3	47	Société Automobiles Alpine	Roger Delageneste Jean Vinatier	Alpine M65	Renault - Gordini 1.3L I4	D.	196
25th	GT 1.3	55	Société Automobiles Alpine	Jacques Cheinisse Jean-Pierre Hanrioud	Alpine A110	Renault-Gordini 1.1L I4	D.	196
26th	P 1.15	61	Société Automobiles Alpine	Pierre Monneret Robert Bouharde	Alpine M63B	Renault-Gordini 1.0L I4	D.	187
27	GT 5.0	10	Shelby-American Inc.	Bob Johnson Tom Payne	Shelby Cobra Daytona	Ford 4.7L V8	G	158
28	P 1.15	51	Société Automobiles Alpine	Roger Masson Guy Verrier	Alpine M64	Renault-Gordini 1.1L I4	D.	148
29	P 5.0	25th	Ecurie Francorchamps	Gérard Langlois van Ophem Léon Dernier	Ferrari 250LM	Ferrari 3.3L V12	D.	146
30th	GT 2.0	38	Jacques Dewez	Jacques Dewez Jean Kerguen	Porsche 904/4 GTS	Porsche 2.0L Flat-4	D.	130
31	GT 5.0	59	Scuderia Filipinetti	Peter Harper Peter Sutcliffe	Shelby Cobra Daytona	Ford 4.7L V8	G	126
32	P 1.15	50	Société Automobiles Alpine	Philippe Vidal Peter Revson	Alpine M64	Renault-Gordini 1.1L I4	D.	116
33	GT 5.0	12	Ford France SA	Jo Schlesser Allen Grant	Shelby Cobra Daytona	Ford 4.7L V8	G	111
34	P 5.0	17th	Maranello Concessionaires Ltd.	David Piper Joakim Bonnier	Ferrari 365P2	Ferrari 4.4L V12	D.	101
35	P 5.0	23	Maranello Concessionaires Ltd.	Lucien Bianchi Mike Salmon	Ferrari 250LM	Ferrari 3.3L V12	D.	99
36	P + 5.0	2	Shelby-American Inc.	Phil Hill Chris Amon	Ford GT40 Mk.II	Ford 7.0L V8	G	89
37	GT 5.0	14th	Ford Advanced Vehicles	John Whitmore Innes Ireland	Ford GT40 Mk.I	Ford 4.7L V8	D.	72
38	GT 1.3	52	Standard Triumph Ltd.	David Hobbs Rob Slotemaker	Triumph Spitfire	Triumph 1.1L I4	D.	71
39	P + 5.0	1	Shelby American Inc.	Ken Miles Bruce McLaren	Ford GT40 Mk.II	Ford 7.0L V8	G	45
40	P 1.3	46	Société Automobiles Alpine	Mauro Bianchi Henri Grandsire	Alpine M65	Renault-Gordini 1.3L I4	D.	32
41	P + 5.0	6th	Scuderia Filipinetti	Herbert Müller Ronnie Bucknum	Ford GT40 Mk.I	Ford 5.3L V8	G	29
42	P 5.0	7th	RRC Walker Racing Team	Bob Bondurant Umberto Maglioli	Ford GT40 Mk.I	Ford 4.7L V8	G	29
43	P 2.0	30th	Anglian Racing Developments	Richard Wrottesley Tony Lanfranchi	Elva GT160	BMW 2.0L I4	G	29
44	GT 2.0	42	Autodelta SpA	Giacomo Russo Carlo Zuccoli	Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ / 2	Alfa Romeo 1.6L I4	D.	22nd
45	P 2.0	33	Porsche System Engineering	Colin Davis Gerhard Mitter	Porsche 904/8	Porsche 2.0L Flat-8	D.	20th
46	GT 2.0	62	Christian Poirot	Christian Poirot Rolf Stommelen	Porsche 904/4 GTS	Porsche 2.0L Flat-4	D.	13
47	P 5.0	15th	Ford France SA	Maurice Trintignant Guy Ligier	Ford GT40 Roadster	Ford 4.7L V8	G	11
48	GT 1.3	53	Standard Triumph Ltd.	Peter Bolton William Bradley	Triumph Spitfire	Triumph 1.1L I4	D.	6th
49	P + 5.0	8th	Johnny Simone	Jo Siffert Jochen Neerpasch	Maserati Tipo 65	Maserati 5.0L V8	D.	3
50	P 1.6	40	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	Giancarlo Baghetti Mario Casoni	Ferrari Dino 166P	Ferrari 1.6L V6	D.	2
51	GT 2.0	43	Autodelta SpA	Teodoro Zeccoli José Rosinski	Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ / 2	Alfa Romeo 1.6L I4	D.	1
Not qualified
52	P + 5.0	56	Abarth France SA	Claude Ballot-Léna Frank Ruata Marcel Martin	Fiat-Abarth 1000SP		D.	1
Not started
53	P 2.0	34	Porsche System Engineering	Dieter Glemser Günter Klass Peter Nöcker Gerhard Koch	Porsche 904/8	Porsche 2.0L Flat-8	D.	2
54	P 1.6	45	Sté d'Etudes et Constr. Automobiles CD	Alain Bertaut André Guilhaudin	CD 3	Alfa Romeo 1.6L I4		3
reserve
55	P 2.0	66	Scuderia Filipinetti	Jacques Calderari Dieter Spoerry	Porsche 904/4 GTS	Porsche 2.0L Flat-8		4th
56	GT 1.6	69	Claude Laurent	Claude Laurent Pierre Gelé	Lotus Elan			5
57	P 5.0		Ecurie Francorchamps	-	Ferrari 250LM	Ferrari 3.3L V12		6th

¹ not qualified ² training car ³ engine failure during training ⁴ reserve ⁵ reserve ⁶ reserve

Only in the entry list

Here you can find teams, drivers and vehicles that were originally registered for the race, but did not take part for various reasons.

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires
58	P + 5.0	4th	Iso Prototipi Bizzarrini	Pierre Noblet Edgar Berney	Iso Grifo A3C	Chevrolet 5.4L V8
59	P + 5.0	5	Iso Prototipi Bizzarrini	Silvio Moser Mário de Araújo Cabral Mario Casoni	Iso Grifo A3C	Chevrolet 5.4L V8
60	P 5.0	16	John Willment Automobiles	Frank Gardner Alan Rees	AC Shelby Cobra Willment Coupe	Ford 4.7L V8
61	P 5.0		Camoradi Racing Team	Lloyd Casner	Maserati Tipo 151	Maserati 4.9L V8
62	P 5.0	15th	Scuderia Filipinetti	Herbert Müller Tommy Spychiger	Ferrari 365P2	Ferrari 4.4L V12
63	P 4.0	18th	Ecurie Francorchamps	Jean Blaton Gérard Langlois van Ophem	Ferrari 330P2	Ferrari 4.0L V12
64	GT 4.0	32	Scuderia Sant'Ambroeus	Giancarlo Sala	Ferrari 275 GTB	Ferrari 3.3L V12
65	GT 4.0	33	Scuderia Sant'Ambroeus	Giampiero Biscaldi	Ferrari 275 GTB	Ferrari 3.3L V12
66	P 3.0	35	RRC Walker Racing Team	Juan Manuel Bordeu Joseph Siffert	Serenissima	ATS 3.0L V8
67	P 3.0	36	RRC Walker Racing Team		Serenissima	ATS 3.0L V8
68	GT 2.0	51	Arthur Swanson	Arthur Swanson Robert Ennis	Abarth-Simca 2000GT
69	GT 5.0	8th	Ford Advanced Vehicles		AC Shelby Cobra	Ford 4.7L V8
70	P 4.0	25th	Ferrari SEFAC Spa		Ferrari 330LM GTO	Ferrari 4.0L V12
71	P 4.0	26th	Ferrari SEFAC Spa		Ferrari 330LM GTO	Ferrari 4.0L V12
72	P 1.6	56	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	Giampiero Biscaldi	Ferrari Dino 166P	Ferrari 1.6L V6
73	GT 4.0	57	North American Racing Team		Ferrari 275 GTB	Ferrari 3.3L V12
74	P 4.0		North American Racing Team		Ferrari
75	P 4.0		Scuderia Sant'Ambroeus		Ferrari 250LM	Ferrari 3.3L V12
76	P 5.0			Richard Attwood	Ford GT40	Ford 4.7L V8
77	GT 5.0	13	John Sparrow	John Sparrow Harry Digby	AC Shelby Cobra	Ford 4.7L V8
78	P 4.0	19th	David Piper	David Piper Tony Maggs Joseph Siffert	Ferrari 330P2	Ferrari 4.0L V12
79	GT 4.0	30th	Ecurie Franco-Brittanic	Robert Blouin Michel de Bourbon-Parma	Ferrari 275 GTB	Ferrari 3.3L V12
80	P 3.0	37	Saramotors		Serenissima	ATS 3.0L V8
81	P 3.0	38	Saramotors		Serenissima	ATS 3.0L V8
82	GT 3.0	39	Sylvain Garant	Marcel Dupeyrat Sylvain Garant	Ferrari 250 GTO	Ferrari 3.0L V12
83	GT 2.0	53	Derrick P. Andree	Herbert Fernando Alec Poole Peter Silva	MG B
84	P 1.6	54	Alejandro de Tomaso		De Tomaso Vallelunga
85	GT 1.6	60	Alain Finkelstein	Alain Finkelstein Paul Condrillier Claude Arbez	Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ / 2	Alfa Romeo 1.6L I4
86	GT 1.3	66	Roland J. Lutz	Roland J. Lutz Richard O'Steen	Abarth-Simca 1300 Bialbero	Simca 1.3L I4
87	GT 1.3	69	Paul Emery	Chris Lambert	Emery GT
88	GT 1.3	70	Paul Emery	Paul Emery	Emery GT
89	GT 1.3	71	Team elite	Clive Hunt John Wagstaff	Lotus Elite
90	GT 1.15	78	Bernard Tramont		Alpine A110	Renault-Gordini 1.2L I4
91	GT 1.15	80	René Bonnet Belgium	Robert Crevits Gustave Gosselin	Matra Djet	Renault-Gordini 1.2L I4
92	GT 1.15	82	René Bonnet Belgium	Xavier Boulanger Teddy Pilette Jean-Claude Franck Orie Bienvault	Matra Djet	Renault-Gordini 1.2L I4

Class winner

class	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
Index of Performance	Herbert Linge	Peter Nöcker	Porsche 904/6	Rank 4
Index of Thermal Efficiency	Gerhard Koch	Anton Fischhaber	Porsche 904/4 GTS	Rank 5
Prototype over 5001 cm³	Refis Fraissinet	Jean de Mortemart	Iso Grifo A3C	Rank 9
Prototype 4001-5000 cc	Pedro Rodríguez	Nina Vaccarella	Ferrari 365P1 / P2 Spyder	Rank 7
Prototype 3001-4000 cc	Masts Gregory	Jochen Rindt	Ferrari 250LM	Overall victory
Prototype 1601-2000 cm³	Herbert Linge	Peter Nöcker	Porsche 904/6	Rank 4
Prototype 1151-1300 cc	Pauk Hawkins	John Rhodes	Austin-Healey Sprite Sebring	Rank 12
GT 4001-5000 cc	Jack Sears	Dick Thompson	Shelby Cobra Daytona	Rank 8
GT 3001-4000 cc	Willy Mairesse	Jean Blaton	Ferrari 275 GTB	Rank 3
GT 1601-2000 cc	Gerhard Koch	Anton Fischhaber	Porsche 904/4 GTS	Rank 5
GT 1001-1151 cc	Jean-Jacques Thuner	Simo Lampinen	Triumph Spitfire	Rank 13

Racing data

• Registered: 92
• Started: 52
• Valued: 14
• Race classes: 11
• Spectator: unknown
• Honorary starter of the race: Maurice Herzog , French Minister for Youth and Sport
• Race weekend weather: hot and dry
• Route length: 13.461 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 24: 00: 00,000 hours
• Total laps of the winning team: 348
• Total distance of the winning team: 4677.110 km
• Winner's average: 194.880 km / h
• Pole position: Phil Hill - Ford GT40 Mk II. (# 2) - 3: 33,000 = 227.509 km / h
• Fastest race lap: Phil Hill - Ford GT40 Mk II. (# 2) - 3: 37.500 = 222.803 km / h
• Racing series: Round 12 of the 1965 World Sports Car Championship

literature

• Christian Moity, Jean-Marc Teissèdre, Alain Bienvenu: 24 heures du Mans, 1923–1992. Éditions d'Art, Besançon 1992, ISBN 2-909-413-06-3 .

Web links

Commons : Le Mans 24 Hours 1965  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Ed Hug's third driver 1965 ( Memento from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
2. ↑ Hugus was not admitted to the award ceremony
3. ↑ Christian Moity et al .: 24 heures du Mans from 1923 to 1992 , Tome 2: 1963-1992

Predecessor race Hill Climb Rossfeld 1965

Sports car world championship

Successor to the 12-hour race in Reims 1965